I was looking at picking up a pair of forceps/hemostats and am debating whether to get bent or straight jaws. Is this totally a matter of personal preference? Does anyone have any insight on the comparative value of one style over the other? Specifically, I was thinking about getting a pair of Bob?s Tactical Scissors -http://www.risingfish.net/BTS.htm. Any comments would be much appreciated.
If you get a straight pair, you can’t pick them up backwards.
I have both, but my personal preference is bent. I find it is usually easier to get a grip on a the rare deeply hooked fly, plus you can get a better range of motion for removing the hook. It may be that I am just more comfortable with them. I buy cheap $2 hemos because they are way too easy to lose.
Never thought about that.
Straight or bent, I prefer ‘needle holders’. Same thing except the jaws are not serrated.
Allan
I use straight cheapo hemostats I buy at swapmeets for $2-$3. I have never used curved ones or those with no teeth, so I can’t comment on which is better. After reading this post and checking out Bob’s, I’ll be dipping mine in Plasti-Dip. Thanks for the thread ND Flyfisher. Luke
I prefer bent if I are going to remove hooks with them. You want the jaw to be as perpendicular as possible to the hook shank to lever it out. The bent hemostat is best for this.
As Dave said, when you stick the curve down the mouth for a hook, the tip is already curved to grab across the hook shank.
I have always prefered the curved ones.
I also prefer the bent version for ALL the reasons ( except …“backwards”) stated above. AND, will definitely look into that Plasti-Dip stuff ( Thanks Luke)
Mark
If you’re going to dip them in plasti dip make sure you have plenty of finger room.
Allan,
Where do you get them? I prefer non-serrated also as it doesn’t damage the fly, but I have a hard time locating them.
Dave
Another vote for bent - with smooth jaws to not ruin hooks. Not only are they better for removing hooks, but they are better for making knots in leaders or for tying on a fly.
I have to buy the fat finger versions anyway. I’ll definitely be trying a bent pair and see if the fella has the non-toothed versions also. Luke
I have hundreds of surgical instrument sets (straight hemo, curved hemo, needle holder, & scissors) from my radiology catherization lab. We use one disposable set for each case and they get thrown away.
That’s where I get my stuff. If you know anyone that works in a hospital with disposable instrument sets, ask them to save them for you. I decontaminated them with betadine. You can use a Clorox.
curved because it does allow for a little bit clearance for seeing where the hook is being grabbed
I worked for 15 years in a blood plasma center. That’s where I learned (right or wrong) that betadine doesn’t sterilize but it does clean, or break everything loose. Alcohol is the same way. AIDS is an extremely fragile virus and will die with just a short exposure to the air. Hepatitis on the other hand has been known to live in dried blood for up to 7 days. If I brought any hemostats home that were being disposed of, I would autoclave them first. An autoclave is like a big surgical pressure cooker. If you don’t have access to an autoclave, I too would suggest soaking in clorox bleach for about an hour. Then rinse with water and dry.
Silver Creek, correct me here if I’m wrong about betadine. It’s been a lot of years since I worked there.
I prefer the straight, with no teeth versions with as short a jaw as possible. i like the short jaws because they are more sturdy and will no shift and bend when grabbing a fly hooked hard into bone. i’ve ruined several long jawed hemos doing this. i also like the no teth, flat jaws. this way you can grab a hook at any angle and get a good hold. i also find it’s easier to flatten bards with no teeth. look for longish handles and big loops.
I like the curved better.
TT.
RE: Betadine …I do believe you are wrong about Betadine otherwise why is it used in many operations as a paint on prep?
In fact here is a quick Google…
“Betadine solution is a disinfectant which annihilates a series of germs (antimicrobial effect) and is suitable for skin and mucous membrane disinfection. It affects bacteria, fungi, viruses and protozoons. The preparation is practically non-toxic. Betadine solution is antimicrobially efficient within the pH interval 1.5 - 6.”
I found the following:
http://www.wpro.who.int/internet/files/pub/85/49b-64.pdf
http://www.reproline.jhu.edu/english/4morerh/4ip/ip_manual/B_Antiseptics.pdf
pg 48:
http://www.cdc.gov/hicpac/pdf/guidelines/Disinfection_Nov_2008.pdf
I think you are correct that undiluted Colox is better than Betadine. Some references say that Betadine kills viruses but the CDC does not recommend it for complete sterilization of hard surfaces.